In his response to the murders of 9 people at the Emanuel AME Church in South Carolina, Reverend Jarrett Maupin did more than invite Sheriff Arpaio, a convicted racistand serial human rights abuser , to watch over his flock. Maupin, the self appointed civil rights leader of Phoenix, also did more than misrepresent the entire black community for media attention. In fact, what Maupin did was expose his alliance with Arizona’s “Bull Conner,” a relationship that has Maupin doing much more than misquoting Arpaio to protect his own reputation. Maupin flat out lied about what Arpaio said during their June 18th press conference and I am about to prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt.

On saturday, June 20th, several ministers, together with over 12 social justice and human rights groups, held their own press conference in response to Arpaio and Maupin’s June 18th media stunt. The message was loud and clear. Arpaio and his posse are not welcome or needed to patrol at or near the churches in South Phoenix. And Rev. Jarret Maupin does not speak for the African American community of Phoenix. Arpaio and Maupin were accused of exploiting a racially motivated terrorist attack for 15 seconds of fame. Naturally, local media caught up with Maupin afterwards and that’s when his dishonesty kicked in. While it’s imposable to know if Maupin believed his own lies, there is no doubt that what he said was 100% false. So far, Real News Az is the only source to fact check Maupin’s remarks.

On 12 news, defending Arpaio and himself,this is what Maupin said:“At the press conference we held, he (Arpaio) admitted that racism is a problem, that white supremacists have a foot-hold here in our community and they must be stopped and they must be told that they are not welcome in our community.” On a scale of one to ten, with ten being the biggest lie, this one scores a 12. Actually, it deserves aShame on 12 Newsaward for not fact checking Maupin’s remarks. Granted, it is not fair to expect media to fact check every comment from someone they publish. But when the reporting is used to fuel a non-existent devision within the black and latino community, we should hold them responsible. They are owned byone of the largest media companiesin the world. They have the resources. If there is any doubt to my claim, please watch for yourself. Fox 10 (not a misprint) live streamed the entire presser uncut and with no edits. Arpaio’s words that Maupin claimed to have heard at the press conference are not there.

Maupin’s statements were more than a surreal fabrication. Arpaio has never denounced white supremacists. Why would he? They are his base. From the anti-immigration extremists who still support Arpaio to the many who support his (on-going?) investigation of Obama's birth certificate, Arpaio has never admitted any wrong doing or racial motivation. Arpaio hasn’t even admitted racial motivation of the nine African Americans murdered inside the Charleston church. They included a library manager, a high school coach and State Senator Clementa Pinckney, who also served as senior pastor at the church. Arpaio continues to make bank off of the racial discourse that has infected this country. He has even received an award from The Sons of The Confederate Veterans, a neo confederate organization that theSouthern Poverty Law Centerranks as a hate group. Not that anyone should be surprised,Sons of The Confederate Veteransare actively lobbying to keep the confederate flag up in South Carolina.

(Picture from Stormfront.org) Former neo-Nazi Vito Lombardi in full uniform as Arpaio shares intel with JT Ready on the locations of pro-immigrant marchers. A few years later, Ready murdered 4 people including a baby before taking his own life. Ready would call MCSO and Arpaio actually would send his deputies to pick up migrants that Ready and his associates held as captives in the desert. This was before Arpaio was striped of all immigration enforcement authority for blatantly and systematically racially profiling latinos.

Is Sheriff Arpaio Rev. Maupin's mentor or are they both just media whores? Arpaio and Maupin have a long and troubling history going back years. Here is a partial timeline.2007:
Maupin tried to challenge Phil Gordon in the 2007 mayor's race. He was removed from the ballot after failing to turn in enough valid signatures to Phoenix's city clerk. To qualify for the ballot, mayoral candidates needed 1,500 signatures from registered voters. Only 1,409 of Maupin's were found to be valid. Phil Gordon (a democrat) was elected mayor. But the anti-immigrant sentiment was rampant in Phoenix. Before the end of Gordon’s first year, he was calling for more police authority to question latinos on their immigration status. Arpaio had already jumped on the anti-immigrant bandwagon. But even before that time, few politicians, public figures or media dared criticize Arpaio for fear of retribution. Media that reported critically of the Sheriff were commonly denied access to press conferences. On October 18, Arpaio had Michael Lacey and Jim Larkin, co-founders of Phoenix New Times and Village Voice Media, arrested in the middle of the night. Even more frightening were the grand jury subpoenas Arpaio obtained demanding the identity of those who read New Times stories online involving the Sheriff. Lacey and Larken sued. They were awarded 3.75 million dollars. With the settlement money the two journalists started The Lacey and Larkin Frontera Fund, offering support
for groups who advocate for civil, human, and migrant rights as well as freedom of speech and civic participation throughout Arizona.

2008: In a rare act of courage and after an employee of the mayors office was profiled and detained by Sheriff Arpaio’s deputies for appearing undocumented, Mayor Gordon had a change of heart. Arpaio was literally terrorizing latinos, native Americans, the undocumented, their friends and family members with massive sweeps of Latino neighborhoods. Those media stunts would last days. Gordon spoke out against Arpaio and became a harsh critic of his racial profiling. He requested a formal investigation by the FBI . (this was when George W. Bush was still president).In retaliation, Arpaio went all out against Mayor Gordon. Using tax dollars and county resources, Arpaio began investigating him and his staff. The Sheriff's Office demanded to see Gordon's e-mails, phone logs and appointment calendars. Arpaio's cult followers started a recall campaign against Gordon. Enter stage right: Reverend Jarrett Maupin called the sheriff, claiming there was a video he saw of Mayor Gordon in a sex act with a 14 year old boy. Maupin became part of Arpaio’s witch hunt of an investigation that proved to be a complete lie. That lie was one Maupin claimed he could prove if only someone (a journalist or law enforcement official) could just give him $2,000 dollars. Maupin even wore a wire for Arpaio. Phoenix New Times did a public records request. There were over 900 pages of documents, New Times reported“The records show that the MCSO worked the case hard. High-level investigators met with Maupin, and Maupin told them he'd actually watched the videotape. He thought he could get it from his source for $2,000. When Maupin's attempts to get the video fell short, investigators met with an acquaintance of Maupin's, a guy Maupin claimed had also seen the videotape. (Turns out, the guy hadn't.) They met with Maupin's assistant/wife, because she might have seen the videotape. (She hadn't, either.) Finally, the sheriff's investigators called Mayor Gordon (on a Saturday, no less) to ask whether he knew anyone fitting Maupin's description of the guy on the tape. (He didn’t.) They were desperate to prove the impossible. After all, there wasn't a videotape, or an underage boy, or a tawdry love affair. But these guys really, really wished there were. “

Worse yet, while this expensive and time consuming investigation was going on, Arpaio’s office was ignoringrapes and molestation cases of underage children by the hundreds. Actual sex crimes against minors were closed without exception, ignored or never even reviewed. Some of those cases came back to haunt Arpaio but the damage done can never be repaired. On November 20, 2008, MCSO arrested Maupin for lying to investigators. Maupin maintained he was innocent until reality set in. By April, Maupin pleaded guilty to one felony count of knowingly making false statements to the FBI. He was given probation but still has the class D felony on his record.

2009:Maupin: "First thing they asked me was ... did I think that the Sheriff was doing racial profiling? I told them no, because you know, I don't ... I don't think that, youknow…"Maupin made the above claim in 2009 only to retract it the very dayit was made public.

2014: Maupin is back in the headlines. The self-anointed civil rights leader was able to briefly reinvent himself as police violence against blacks were making headlines from Ferguson to Phoenix. But Maupin could never decide which side he was on and this hurt the entire #Backlivesmatter movement in Phoenix.

But Arpaio’s “use of force” scenarios were fact checked and discredited in a report by Jay Syrmopoulos, an investigative journalist forThe Free Thought Project. In his report he interviews whistleblower cop Alex Salazar who reviewed Fox 10's Officer Salazar explains “These scenarios are designed to make any person fail and to cause them to believe there are no other options. He had no taser, baton or other less than lethal weapons. What about kicking the big guy in the nuts, waiting for backup, or tasering him.The profession of law enforcement is difficult at times, but the excessive brainwashing on a daily basis taking place, that you may die, is too extreme and gives many the belief it is OK to use deadly force. In many of these situations, Tamir Rice or Andy Lopez comes to mind, these officer’s just wanted to plain shoot and kill.”

Indeed, the use-of-force propaganda’s intent is simple: Always trust a cop when they say they “feared for their life.” The video went viral. Law enforcement, police unions and white folks afraid of the black man made certain of it. A reportcame out later showing that police don’t even make the top ten of most dangerous jobs. This was reported bythe Bureau of Labor Statisticsas well as theNational Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. (Most on-the-job deaths of police are the result of car accidents).

Maupin was also called out for the stunt byTia Oso from Black Alliance for Just Immigration. She explains “While I am appalled by the media pandering, I cannot say that I am surprised. The story was immediately applauded by the corrupt and law-breaking Joe Arpaio, himself a media hound andperpetrator of racial profiling and human rights violations."
Tia goes on to explain-"The #BlackLivesMatter movement has gained international attention and for media personalities looking for conservative leaning story angles and Al Sharpton-esque figures chasing five minutes of fame, this is an opportunity to gain notoriety. However, as a Black woman concerned with the well-being of my community and an organizer with the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, I am uncompromising in my commitment to justice."

This list isn't even close to complete. And to be fair, Rev. Maupin has seemingly done some good things for victims of police violence and those who have been discriminated because of race or gender. But too often, his flip-flopping and hunger for the spotlight causes more damage than repair.
For those who wish to defend or denounce him, feel free to use the comment section.

It was promoted as "Freedom Of Speech Rally Round II," an anti-Muslim protest outside the Islamic Community Center in Phoenix Arizona. It was suppose to be another Muhammad drawing contest like the one in Garland Texas. It drew a crowd of about 600 but the anti-islam crowd found itself out numbered 2 to 1. On the north and across the street from the mosque were armed militias, extremist christian fundamentalists, the usual anti-immigrant pro-Arpaio crowd and white supremacists. Basically, the same folks one can see at any tea party rally in Arizona, with the exception of a few new faces. But no drawing contest actually took place. Organizer Jon Ritzheimer, an Iraq war vet with previous employment difficulties, is now in hiding due to his paranoia that ISIS is coming for him. But it seems more about the reality that his 15 minutes of fame are up. Ritzheimer seemed to start losing it late thursday evening when he realized that selling “Fuck Islam” T shirts while claiming you don't hate all muslims doesn't really pass the smell test with media-both locally and nationally. CNN's Anderson Cooper left RItzheimer confused when he pointed out that those who serve in the middle east are, in fact, defending Islamic governments. That makes it a bit tricky to claim that over one billion people are all involved in some evil cult. Negative reactions also surfaced from residents in the area of the mosque. Ritzheimer promoted the event by inviting as many armed bikers and militia types as he could while encouraging everyone to arm themselves to defend their 1st amendment rights. Now he is scamming "patriots" for cash on a go-fund-me site blaming the media for his own ignorance. While in hiding, he is hoping to raise 10 million dollars so he can run against John McCain. I'm not sure how one would run for public office while hiding underground but if you were to give me 10 million dollars, I'm sure I could figure it out. Ritzheimer also claimed there would be two militias at the event. I only spotted one calling itself theArizona Defense Initative. The Facebook page shows them involved with border type actions. They also showed up at "Black Lives Matter" protests with AR 15s to intimidate protesters.

While thousands were expected to support the protest, well over half of those that attended were counter protesters. They included a few christian church groups, jews, muslims, atheists, anarchists and peace activists. While there were no injuries or arrests, this could’ve easily spiraled into a blood bath. As you can see in the video, a few of the younger muslim’s (some who are also veterans of the Iraq war) were more than willing to go toe to toe or fist to fist with the white supremacists. If the other side were to have put down their AR 15’s and had there not been an intense and well planned police presence, I would’ve bet my next three paychecks that there would’ve been some ambulances hauling a bunch of racist old bikers and white supremacists to the ER. Fortunately, (or unfortunately-depending on your perspective) that did not happen. PUHC (Phoenix Urban Heath Collective) were also on-site to assist with the usual issues like making sure people are hydrated (it was well over 100 degrees) and helping protesters who are pepper-sprayed by police. But no situations warranted any attention except for one elderly lady there to protest against Islam needing minor assistance. PUHC, being a class act and considered a frontier organization for assisting in protest related injuries, immediately gave her much needed assistance. The event lasted into the evening with no arrests or injuries on either side.

This video of the eventoffers both perspectives. While I was hard pressed to get any intelligent responses from the ant-muslim side, I did score an interview with neo-Nazi Harry Hughes, regional director of the National Socialist Movement. (The NSM sometimes refer to themselves as a “white civil rights group" with Hitler referred to as a "white civil rights leader.” ) Hughes was surprisingly indifferent to the whole situation. When I asked if he felt it was right that an entire religion be held accountable for the actions of a few, his response was “ It’s probably not fair.” I followed up with asking him why he was on the north side of the street with the anti-muslim crowd. He responded with a huge grin, “ because they already know who I am over there and I’ve got a few more friends on this side.” That statement holds lots of truth. Harry Hughes is certainly no stranger to local anarchists as the NSM has held two large street rallies in Phoenix with the last one in 2010 when they were greeting by over 250 anarchists. You can use your imagination as to how that went or click here to watch it.

While Ritzheimers claims of having his life threatened are lacking in evidence, threats against muslims are increasing in the Phoenix area. It was just a few days before this event when Sumayyah Dawud arrived home only to be greeted by a threatening male stranger. “This guy comes up to my car window and started aggressively questioning me what I was doing there, saying I didn't belong there, etc. even though I said I live here. He asked me why I was wearing what I was wearing and asked me if I was Muslim. I kept telling him to go away and he said he wasn't going to leave. I couldn't even get out of the car he was so close. Then he reached into his shirt like he was going for a weapon and said "Oh, too bad I don't have my swiss army belt." Then he left. “

Sumayyah is a young muslim and human rights activist involved and seen often at anti-police brutality actions. In some ways, that makes Sumayyah twice the target of the fascist right-wing element that thrives in Arizona. (She is in the video holding the "Muslims Lives Matter" sign).

Threats against muslims are not uncommon in Arizona. The same mosque targeted at this event had bullets fired into it in the past. The incident occurred after the hoopla in 2012 on the building of the muslim community center in New York near the twin towers. Recently Phoenix mosques have received threatening letters promising to kill two muslims in America for every American killed by ISIS overseas. Threats against anyone who looks muslim are becoming even more common in the Phoenix area. Article and video by Dennis Gilman

Archives

Categories

Many of the families living at Mesa Royale Mobile Home Park have lived there for at least 15 years, some even longer. Most had purchased their trailers from the park's owner.

While the city of Mesa has planned to gentrify the area for some time, the residents were never notified until May of this year. At that time, the city inspector told them of code violations (mostly electrical) that have been existent for generations.

At that time, instead of citing violations, about 125 families with about 300 children were told they would have to move as the city would be closing the park.

Neither the city of Mesa nor the park owners offered any compensation to the residents to relocate their mobile homes. (a cost that typically runs into thousands of dollars).

In June, the city decided to issue code violations to the families as well as an official eviction notice of November 24.

Worse yet, the owner who sold the mobile homes to the residents neglected certain details over the years-like proper titles to their homes. Legal issues are now surfacing as to whether the park owner had the legal ownership over some of the trailers which he sold to the residents. Titles were not properly transferred and chasing these legal documents has become an additional (and costly) burden for the families already served with eviction.

It was then that the families started fighting back. Through The Comités de Defensa del Barrio, (CDB) they began organizing. CDB describes itself as "Indigenous Peoples who struggle to Defend Civil Rights-Human Rights-Indigenous Rights and the Rights of Mother Earth.” They protested twice every week near the downtown area of the light railand city hall, which is about a half a mile from Mesa Royale. Mesa PD tried to stop the protests by threatening to cite them for using mega-phones. But the protesters were not intimidated and (with mega-phones) kept the bi-weekly actions going despite the threats from law enforcement.

But the fight was only beginning. To take on a city with a long historyof doing as it pleases to the working poor and minorities, legal representation was going to be needed. Since the people who live there are mostly Mexican, working class families, lawyers weren’t about to take this case-that is, with the exception of one law firm: The Law Office of Ray A. Ybarra Maldonado, PLC. Call it what you wish -- a stroke of luck or an answer to the prayers of hard working people, getting Ray Ybarra to take this mess of a case was an incredible blessing.

Ray drafted 72 notices of appeal for 72 families and was prepared to fight for each one of them. The families, themselves did the filing.This week, the city of Mesa postponed the hearings and changed their plans to evict the families. They are now being given 30 months to vacate instead of the November deadline.

Ray recently informed me that "30 months was the minimum I was told, but if everything gets brought up to code, in theory it could become permanent."

The city says there a new owner interested in the buying the trailer park. While this is certainly good news, the fight is far from over. Mesa Royale Mobile Home Park is a prime area for a new light rail station and corporate owned developments.

Sal Reza, founder and organizer of CDB states "It’s a temporary fix but we made the city of Mesa blink for the first time. They are just use to running over people.”